Thanks to my dear old friend Leslie Anne who tip me to the LCBO’s website where they have an amazing selection of carrot cakes, everything from Hawaiian to chocolate! It’s a fascinating over view of all the possible variations on this classic dessert. Some of the cakes are made with cooked carrot puree others with shredded, uncooked carrots, some are made with butter and others with oil. For those who don’t know about the Canadian way for selling alcohol, the LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario) is the province run liquor stores, the province has exclusive rights to sell all booze in Ontario. This being the case it is no wonder that the Bourbon Pecan Carrot cake caught my attention. The thing was that I didn’t have enough bourbon nor did I have pecans – also I wanted to make the icing with Mascarpone so what I came up with was Walnut Rum Raisin carrot cake with Mascarpone Icing. With much thanks to the folks at the LCBO for providing me the base recipe with which to play with.

Rum Raison, Walnut Carrot Cake

Preheat the oven to 350 F

Grease generously 3 9″ round cake pans.

Grate in a food processor 4 cups of carrots(best to use big loose carrots that have not been refrigerated and don’t come in a plastic bag).

In a sauce pan add 1 cup of raisins add 1/3 cup plus 1 Tablespoon of Rum and over medium heat bring just to a boil and immediate take off the heat and lets sit until needed.

In the bowl of a standard mixer using a paddle attachment (the whisk would work also) add: 1 1/2 cups brown sugar (I used golden Demerara), 1 cup organic Sunflower Oil (or any other none flavored oil) 4 large room temperature eggs, and 2 teaspoons of either rum or vanilla. Beat for a full 3 minutes on medium speed.

With a spatula add the dry ingredients, once they are fully incorporated fold in the shredded carrots, the rasins and any remaining liquid and finally the chopped nuts.

Spoon the batter into the three prepared pans – it should be about 2 1/4 cups per pan. Tap each pan on the counter several times to get ride of any air bubbles and bake for about 30 minutes, when done the cakes will be done and firm in the center.

Cool for at least 15 minutes on an oven rack before removing the cakes from the pans. Let cool to room temperature – I let mine sit out over night.

When ready to assemble make the icing.

In the bowl of a standard mixer add 8 ounces of Mascarpone, 8 ounces of organic Cream Cheese, 1 Tablespoon of Lemon juice and 2 Teaspoons of Rum with the whisk attachment whisk until creamy, turn the machine off and add 1 1/2 cups of sifted icing sugar slowing begin to whisk again until the mixture is well combined. You may need to add more sugar, I don’t like overly sweet icing (I know that seems like a contradiction in terms) which is why I add the lemon juice to give it an edge which is slightly mellowed out by the rum. If you want you can also add a pinch of sea salt.

Place one cake on a serving plate and spread 1/3 of the icing over it, cover with the next one and repeat until all three layers are done and garnish with the reserved whole walnuts. Don’t worry that this cake’s sides aren’t also covered in icing – for me this is the perfect cake icing balance also I like the look of the cake not covered in icing, but if you want to double the icing recipe and you are good to go.

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About urbanfoodguy

I'm a self taught cook with a dedication to buying and eating food that is as humanely and sustainably raised as possible. Which is why in addition to recipes you will see a lot of environmental/political reporting here. I started cooking when I was about 6, it's something I always loved to do. Watching Graham Kerr - aka "The Galloping Gourmet" - was what got me started and I have never really looked back. Over the years I've been a private chef, a caterer, and a food stylist for magazines such as Bon Appétit, Food & Wine, Real Simple, Oprah, Martha Stewart's Everyday Food and many more.
I've also worked in the prep kitchen for the Food Network on the Bobby Flay and Paula Deen shows. Now I work at home in my kitchen sharing with you here recipes that I create or that other people have created that inspire me and I think you will like.
I love my neighborhood (the Lower East Side of Manhattan) and I love to travel. Because NYC is such a big place I tend to focus mostly on my 'hood and the ones that are close by: The East Village, Bowery, Chinatown and Williamsburg. My love of travel has no limits really, I'm always ready to get on a plane. I was lucky enough to have a business for many years that allowed me to spend a lot of time in South East Asia. These days I've been spending time in Mexico, Germany, Canada and the West Coast of the U.S., but check back you never know where I might end up.
I do consulting, cooking classes, and freelance lifestyle writing so if you are interested please send me a note: urbanfoodguy@gmail.com